177,092 research outputs found
Inter-provincial migration in Iran with special reference to East Azarbayejan Ostan.
No full textSIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre- DSC:D77532 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo
Automatic pain assessment on cancer patients using physiological signals recorded in real-world contexts
No full text(-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate downregulates Pg-P and BCRP in a tamoxifen resistant MCF-7 cell line
No full textWe investigated the anticancer effect of EGCG treatment on a breast carcinoma cell line resistant to tamoxifen (MCF-7Tam cells). As there are no reports about the molecular mechanisms implicated in EGCG treatment of tamoxifen resistant breast carcinoma cells, we studied the effects of EGCG treatment on three plasma membrane proteins that are involved in the mechanism of drug-resistance: Multidrug Resistance Protein (MRP1), P-glycoprotein (P-gp) and Breast Cancer Resistance Protein (BCRP). EGCG treatment (10-100 μg/ml for 24-72 hours) caused cell growth inhibition and dose-dependent apoptosis: after 100 μg/ml EGCG treatment for 24 hours, Bax expression increased and Bcl2 expression decreased (p<0.05). Coherently, Annexin V-FITC apoptosis assay detected a significant increase in labelled cells (p<0.05). EGCG did not affect MRP1: in contrast, 100 μg/ml EGCG administration caused P-gp decrease to 53% of control cells (p<0.001) and this effect was not due to downregulation of P-gp gene expression. EGCG induced P-gp decrease even when MG132, a strong proteasome inhibitor, was given together with EGCG to MCF-7Tam cells. EGCG treatment also inhibited BCRP activity: mRNA transcription and protein level did not change after treatment, but mitoxantrone test demonstrated a strong inhibition of BCRP activity (p<0.001). In conclusion, the present results showed that EGCG could down-regulate the activity of two molecules that play a key role in drug metabolism and transport and that are highly expressed in tamoxifen resistant breast carcinoma cells. The interaction of EGCG and drugs used in the therapy of estrogen sensitive breast carcinoma ought to be subject of studies and the potential use of EGCG in drug-resistant diseases ought to be better considered. © 2010 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved
Virtual Reality in Home Palliative Care: Brief Report on the Effect on Cancer-Related Symptomatology
No full textVirtual reality (VR) has been used as a complementary therapy for managing psychological and physical symptoms in cancer patients. In palliative care, the evidence about the use of VR is still inadequate. This study aims to assess the effect of an immersive VR-based intervention conducted at home on anxiety, depression, and pain over 4days and to evaluate the short-term effect of VR sessions on cancer-related symptomatology. Participants were advanced cancer patients assisted at home who were provided with a VR headset for 4days. On days one and four, anxiety and depression were measured by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and pain by the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI). Before and after each VR session, symptoms were collected by the Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale (ESAS). Participants wore a smart wristband measuring physiological signals associated with pain, anxiety, and depression. Fourteen patients (mean age 47.2±14.2years) were recruited. Anxiety, depression (HADS), and pain (BPI) did not change significantly between days one and four. However, the ESAS items related to pain, depression, anxiety, well-being, and shortness of breath collected immediately after the VR sessions showed a significant improvement (p<0.01). A progressive reduction in electrodermal activity has been observed comparing the recordings before, during, and after the VR sessions, although these changes were not statistically significant. This brief research report supports the idea that VR could represent a suitable complementary tool for psychological treatment in advanced cancer patients assisted at home
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
No full textWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Home artificial nutrition in palliative care cancer patients: Impact on survival and performance status
No full textBackground and aims: The prevalence of malnutrition is over 70% in advanced cancer patients and impacts negatively on survival and quality of life. Artificial nutrition can be integrated into a home palliative care program. This observational study aims to describe the criteria for identifying the cancer patients that could benefit from home artificial nutrition (HAN) and to evaluate its impact on survival and performance status. Methods: The selection criteria for patient's eligibility to HAN were: Karnofsky Performance Status (KPS) ≥40, life expectancy ≥6 weeks, inadequate caloric intake ± malnutrition, suitable psycho-physical conditions and informed consent. The access route for nutritional therapy (home parenteral nutrition, HPN; home enteral nutrition, HEN) was chosen according to the ESPEN Guidelines. The parameters considered were: primary site of the tumor; oral food intake; nutritional status; stage of cachexia; fluid, energy and protein supplied by HAN; survival. Results: From 1990 to 2019, 43,474 cancer patients were assisted at home in Bologna (Italy). HAN started in 969 patients (2.2% of total patients, 571 men and 398 women, mean age 65.7 ± 12.7 years): HPN in 629 patients (64.9%), with gastrointestinal obstruction as the main indication; HEN in 340 patients (35.1%), with dysphagia as the main indication. Considering the 890 deceased patients, the mean survival after the start of HAN was 18.3 weeks and 649 patients (72.9%) survived more than 6 weeks. The mean survival was higher in HEN (22.1 weeks) compared to HPN patients (16.1 weeks) (p < .001). After one month, KPS was unchanged in 649 (67.0%), increased in 232 (23.9%) and decreased in 88 patients (9.1%). The mean KPS increased in patients starting HAN in pre-cachexia and cachexia (p < .001). Cachexia and refractory cachexia at the entry were associated with a reduced survival [odds ratio: 1.5 and 2.3 respectively, p < .001 for both condition] respect to pre-cachexia. Conclusions: The selection criteria allow the identification of the patient who can take advantage of HAN. HAN can be effective in avoiding death from malnutrition in 73% of patients, and in maintaining or improving the KPS at one month in 90% of cases. The benefits provided by HAN on survival and performance status depend on the cachexia degree at the entry
The Aging Thyroid: A Reappraisal Within the Geroscience Integrated Perspective
No full textThyroid plays a crucial and pervasive role in physiology (metabolism, thermogenesis and immunity, among others) and its aging and related changes in thyroid hormones production contribute to the common occurrence of thyroid diseases in elderly and to age-associated changes in other organs and systems. We address the complexity of thyroid aging following the basic suggestions of Geroscience. This integrative new perspective identifies few basic molecular mechanisms or "pillars" (inflammation, adaptation to stress, loss of proteostasis, stem cell exhaustion, metabolism derangement, macromolecular damage, and epigenetic modifications) as a unifying conceptual framework to understand the aging process and age-associated diseases. Within this scenario, we review available data on presence and role in the thyroid of alterations of such mechanistic pillars, paying particular attention to: i) inflammation, focusing on cellular senescence and age-associated dysbiosis (alteration of gut microbiota); ii) telomere shortening as an example of macromolecular damage; iii) proteasomal function including mitophagy and autophagy; iv) stem cells and cell renewal; v) energy metabolism and mitochondrial dysfunction; vi) age-related epigenetic changes, focusing on DNA methylation. Overall, the study of these topics in the thyroid is in its infancy and deserves much more attention. Finally, thyroid function in centenarians as a model of healthy aging is reviewed within the framework of possible adaptive mechanisms involving thyroid to attain longevity. Accordingly, the concept of "thyroid biography" is proposed to grasp the complex combination of factors (including endocrine disruptors and lifestyle habits) impinging lifelong on thyroid function at the individual level
"Closing the R&D Gap, Evaluating the Sources of R&D Spending"
No full textBoth spending and tax policies have been implemented in the United States with the goal of stimulating private sector research and development (R&D). Karier questions whether current R&D policy, especially the research and experimentation tax credit, can contribute to closing the gap between nondefense expenditures on R&D in the United States and such expenditures in other countries, such as Japan and Germany. He also explores possible changes to our current R&D policy to make it more effective.
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
No full textThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Letter from R. R. Zellick, Assistant Trust Officer, Anglo California National Bank of San Francisco, to Joseph R. Goodman, October 2, 1942
No full textLetter from R. R. Zellick, Assistant Trust Officer at The Anglo California National Bank of San Francisco, to Joseph R. Goodman, regarding property owned by Dave Tatsuno. Zellick mentions a dispute between current tenants and Tatsuno, and that Tatsuno has asked Goodman to help locate trustworthy tenants.Personal correspondence, organizational records, government documents, publications, and other papers created or collected by Joseph R. Goodman documenting the forced removal and incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II, as well as organized resistance to incarceration. Included in the collection are records of the Japanese Young Men's Christian Association and the Japanese American Citizens' League in San Francisco, including papers of the Japanese YMCA's executive secretary Lincoln Kanai; Sakai family papers; Goodman's correspondence to and from Japanese American incarcerees, organizations opposing forced removal and incarceration of Japanese Americans, the War Relocation Authority, and others; publications, photographs, and ephemera from the Topaz Relocation Center, where Goodman taught high school; War Relocation Authority records and publications; and newspaper clippings, pamphlets, and reports about forced removal and incarceration created by various government, religious, and civic organizations, in California and nationwide
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